


A Single Red Rose

by kathiann



Category: The Mentalist
Genre: F/M, Romance, Unresolved Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-02-24
Updated: 2009-03-03
Packaged: 2017-12-10 06:04:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/782658
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kathiann/pseuds/kathiann
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jane and Lisbon are washing cars and things get a little out of hand. Slightly OOC.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> SO this is what happens when I have to much time on my hands. While the site was having issues with anyone logging on and updating, I was busy writing the rest of my Cho/Lisbon story and this one shot. It might be a little OOC, but I think it's ok for this story I think. I got the inspiration for this story from a random paring generator (I don't remember where I saw it posted originally, but send me a message and I can send you a link if interested) and the Montgomery Gentry song "Hell Ya", especially the second verse.

"Damn it, Jane!" Teresa Lisbon yelled at the consultant. "What the hell did you do that for?" She was drenched head to toe in cold soapy water. She was over at his house helping him wash his car and washing hers too. They were almost done when Jane had dumped the bucket of soapy water on her. Now, he was standing there laughing hysterically.

"Fine. If that's the way you want to play." She grabbed the hose and turned it on full blast, aiming it at him. He started running around, trying to avoid the hose. He picked up the sponge and threw it at her.

"I give up! I give up!" He called, holding his hands up. She held the hose on him for a few more seconds before she twisted the nozzle and put it down.

"Truce?" She wanted to get his word that no more water would be exchanged.

"Yes truce. You have soap in your hair." He was still laughing at her slightly.

"Yea, well you have mud on your pants." She was trying to keep a straight face, but it was getting harder and harder.

"Do you want to go in and use the shower? I can throw your clothes in the dryer." He was still dripping and she thought that a shower wouldn't be a bad idea.

"OK, I suppose. Do you have anything I can put on in the mean time?" He got a mischievous look on his face.

"I'm sure I could dig something up." They walked toward the house and, to Lisbon's surprise, Jane pulled off his shirt and started taking off his pants.

"What are you doing?" She tried not to look, but it was hard. His chest was well sculpted and slightly damp. He almost glowed. He looked like a God with his curly golden hair; he was like a dream come true.

"I don't want to get water all over the floor." He said it as if it was obvious and it was, once she thought about it.

"Well, don't expect me to strip in your drive way. You started it; you can clean up the floor after me."

She started to walk up the stairs inside the house. Jane called after her "First door on the right. There are towels in the closet right inside the door. If you leave your clothes outside the door, I'll put them in the dryer."

She waved her hand over her back to signify that she had heard him and kept walking up the stairs. She walked into the bathroom and her first thought was that just this bathroom was almost bigger than her apartment. The second was that the shower looked absolutely amazing. There were multiple shower heads and it looked like you could get sprayed from all angles. It looked heavenly.

She quickly stripped and placed all of her clothes on the floor just outside the door. She turned the water on and stepped into the shower. It was heavenly. She enjoyed it so much that she barely registered Jane yelling a thank you through the door.

She stayed in the shower for over half an hour, finally she decided that her clothes were probably dry by now and decided to get out. She pulled a large fluffy towel out of the cabinet and dried off before wrapping it around her and opening the door to see if her clothes had been returned to her. They hadn't.

"Hey, Jane!" she called. Not hearing him answer she walked out of the bathroom and down the stairs. She listened closely to see if she could hear a dryer running. She figured it was probably in the garage and started heading in the direction that she thought it was in.

Jane saw her slinking around the corner into the kitchen in just a towel. He smiled and snuck up behind her. "BOO!" he called. Lisbon screamed and turned around, holding her towel closely to her.

"Jane, what are you trying to do, scare me to death?" She had turned a bright shade of red and Jane was just laughing.

"I couldn't resist. Your clothes aren't dry yet anyway."

"Why not?"

"I forgot to start the drier. You still have at least twenty minutes." He grinned at her.

"Well, do you have something else I can put on?"

"You can use my robe, but it might be a little big."

"It's better than a towel." She mumbled under her breath.

"I'll just go and get it." He slid by her and up the stairs. She just stood there, watching him go. He didn't wear jeans very often, but he did look good in them. She admired the way they clung to him as he ran up the stairs. She heard a door open and then shut and turned around. She didn't want him to know she had been admiring him from behind.

As Jane comes down the stair he looks at her standing with her back to him. He's never really had a chance to see her legs before. She always wears pants. As he looks at them he notices that she's got something on her right leg. As he comes closer he realizes what it is.

"You've been inked!" He calls out, causing her to spin around.

"What?"

"You've got a tattoo, on your leg. That must be why you always wear pants."

She looks down at her leg as if just now noticing that she has a tattoo wrapping around her right leg from her ankle and disappearing under the towel.

"What I can't figure out is what it is."

"It's a rose." She states simply as if it's obvious.

"It doesn't look like a rose to me; it looks more like a vine."

"There was some confusion when I got it done. I said I wanted one single red rose, and the artist thought I said one winding red rose. I was a little inebriated at the time and really didn't realize what was happening until it was too late. It's really grown on me." She grabbed the robe from him and walks around the corner to put it on.

"So where does it end?" he asked with a bit of excitement in his voice.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" she said with a smile, walking back around the corner and tossing the towel at him. "Thanks."

They both went into the living room and sat on the sofa waiting for the dryer to be done. They talked about nothing in particular, but Jane kept trying to catch a better look at the vine on her leg that led to the rose, where ever it may be. When the buzzer went off on the dryer, they both got up.

"Here, let me show you where the dryer is. You can change in there." He led the way through the kitchen to a little room that held the washer and dryer.

"Thanks, Jane." She shut the door, but left it open a crack. She pulled her clothes out of the dryer and didn't notice Jane pushing the door open just a crack more than it was before.

He felt a little guilty watching her like that, but she would never tell him where it ended and this was the only way he was going to figure it out. He watched as she pulled her panties on under the robe and then took it off. Jane had to work not to gasp as he saw that the rose ended just above waist of her panties, but it wasn't just one rose. Starting at her upper thigh, right where the leg turns in to the butt there were roses every few inches on alternating sides of the vine.

He quickly pulled the door back to where she had left it and walked back to the living room before she could catch him looking at her. He hoped that he would dream about that "single red rose" that night. It would be a happy dream indeed.

"Thanks for the robe, Jane." Lisbon tossed it at him. She heads out the door and just before she shut it, turned and said "Next time you want to look at my ass Jane, all you have to do is ask."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't planning to write a second chapter to this, but it just came to me at work yesterday, so here it is. If possible even more OOC than before, but that's ok, right?

It had been a few weeks since they had washed cars at his house and he was having problems sleeping. Of course he always had problems sleeping, but now it was different. He wasn't dreaming about dead bodies and bloody smiley faces, he was dreaming about roses. Not just any roses, the roses tattooed on the leg and back side of a certain CBI senior agent.

It was enough to make him want to dream about the murders of his wife and child. He couldn't dream about Lisbon. She was, for all intents and purposes, his boss. It was really starting to be a problem. He was finding it hard to concentrate at crime scenes, at the office, basically anywhere Lisbon was.

He was staring at her right now; she had been favoring her side today. It was a curious thing. She hadn't taken down any suspects twice her size lately, she didn't practice martial arts, and as far as he knew she hadn't been in any fights. There was only one thing it could be.

That would mean that she had lied to him and he hadn't caught it. She had said that it had been a misunderstanding while she was "inebriated." He had assumed that she had been drunk, but there was no way that all of the work she had on her had been done in one setting. She had to have gone back at least two or three times, right?

She was trying to lean over Cho's desk and look at the information he had pulled up on his computer screen. Most people would have missed it, but Jane distinctly saw her wince slightly as she bent over. It made him want to take her into her office and undress her, just to see what was wrong, and if his suspicions were correct.

He watched her leave the main room and go into her office. He might not be able to undress her, but he was pretty good at throwing her off balance. Maybe he could get her to reveal something to him. He quickly jumped up and followed her into her office. He noticed that the blinds were closed and the door was shut, but went in without knocking anyway.

"Lisbon—" he started but was cut off by Lisbon hissing loudly at him.

"Damn it, Jane, shut the door." She was standing there with her shirt half untucked and Jane quickly shut the door behind him.

"Lisbon, I'm flattered, but shouldn't we at least go on a date first?" Jane asked with a laugh.

"Shut up, Jane," Lisbon said and turned her back to him.

"Did you hurt your side?"

"No." She had untucked the rest of her shirt and he heard the zipper on her pants being pulled down. He had come in here thinking he could throw her off balance, but right now he was the one having problems.

"What are you doing?" He asked nervously.

"What does it look like I'm doing?"

"I know what it looks like, but I still want you to tell me."

"I'm checking my bandage, I'm still a little sore; I want to make sure I wasn't bleeding"

"I thought you said you were drunk when you got that tattoo."

Lisbon looked over her shoulder at him "You saw it. There's no way it could have been done in one shot. It looked lonely there by itself. I've been adding to it slowly."

"Really?" Jane was intrigued. She still didn't look like the tattoo type, but here she was admitting that she had them done regularly, or at least periodically. "So what else did you get?"

"Just another rose." Her back was still to him, but she could almost hear her smirking. He knew she wanted him to ask her to see it; otherwise she would have made him leave by now. It was killing him, but he just had to do it.

"Can I see it?" He asked shyly. He wasn't sure what would happen if she did show it to him, but he was pretty sure it was going to be worth it.

"Well, I did tell you to ask." She turned around and pulled down the front of her pants slightly to show him the new tattoo she had got. It was a continuation from the one on her leg; the vine wrapped around her side and there was a rose just above her hip bone on her stomach.

"I…I suppose that would be tender." He was stammering, but he didn't care. He wanted to touch it, but didn't think it would be a good idea at the moment. There was no telling what he would do.

"It is tender. I'd appreciate it if you didn't say anything to the rest of the team. It will be healed in a few days and then it won't be a problem. I just don't want anyone knowing. It would ruin my image." She placed the bandage back over it and proceeded to tuck in her shirt, redoing her pants.

"Don't worry, I won't." He was still staring at the spot that she had just showed to him. He couldn't take his eyes off it. It was as if he could still see the rose right there. It had been a dark red, with just a little bit of black and pink. It fit her just right.

"Are you ok, Jane?" Lisbon sounded concerned, but he could still here the amusement in her voice. He shook his head to clear it and looked up at her.

"Um, yeah, it just…wow. I mean." He was having a hard time forming complete sentences. Now he was never going to get any sleep or any work done. Not that he got much sleep or work done before, but now it was going to be impossible.

"Patrick Jane at a loss for words. I never thought I'd see the day." Lisbon walked by him touching his hand slightly. It sent s shiver up his spine and he was surprised. He hadn't expected the touch or the tingle.

"We should really get back to work." Jane just looked at her as if she hadn't spoken. He had no desire to go back out and get to work. What he really wanted to do was grab her by the arms, push her up against the door and kiss her like there was no tomorrow, but he couldn't do that. She was the boss.

Lisbon looked back at him from the door. Her hand was on the handle and she was about to open it. "I might be the boss, Jane, but I'm also a woman, sometimes it's ok just to act on those urges of yours." She quickly opened the door and sauntered out the door with Jane just staring at her back side and imagining the roses that were there. This was going to be another long night.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is the last part. I'm sad to see it end. This chapter may be a little more OOC than the other two, but we need a little OOC every now and then don't we? Thanks for every one who read and responded, and to Ebony 10 for being my beta.

Lisbon was watching TV at her apartment. She may be a cop, but she still got the state three day weekends, and she intended to enjoy it to the fullest by doing nothing. She was wearing a tank top and a pair of loose fitting exercise shorts. She was looking at the tattoo on her leg and wondering.

She was thinking: what would have happened if she had asked Jane if he wanted to touch it? He looked like he did, but they had been at work and that was no place for where her thoughts had been taking her. Now, though, she allowed her mind to wonder. She traced the vine on her leg to where it disappeared under the leg of her shorts. She was wondering if the vine could use some sprucing up. Maybe a few leafs? She could do another vine twisting up the around the one there now. That would be interesting. She made a note to check and see if they could do another vine twisting around the one that was already there.

She was thinking about it when there was a knock at her door. She was a little surprised, she never really got visitors. It was probably the neighbor. She often went out of town and asked Lisbon to bring her mail in. She got up reluctantly form the sofa and went to answer the door. She looked through the peep hole and was surprised by who she saw standing there.

"Jane, what are you doing here?" She asked when she opened the door. He didn't say anything, just stared at her leg. She could feel his eyes slowly going up her leg following the tattoo to where it disappeared under her shorts. He swallowed and cleared his throat.

"Can I come in?" he asked hoarsely.

"Sure." She turned and walked into the apartment expecting for Jane to follow her. She knew that he was looking at her ass. H'd been doing that a lot lately—ever since he got a glimpse of her tattoo. She wondered if that was why he was here.

She sat down on the sofa and heard the door shut. "Do you want something to drink Jane?" she called from the sofa.

"No, that's ok." He walked up to the sofa where Lisbon was sitting. "Do you mind if I sit down?"

"Not at all, go ahead." Lisbon scooted over on the sofa slightly so that Jane would have a place to sit. She had her legs pulled up under her, and she could tell that Jane was trying to get a glimpse of her tattoo. It was almost like he was obsessed with it.

Jane was attempting to pay attention to whatever show was on the TV, a cooking show where the people seemed to be running around crazily and one guy was doing all of the talking. The distraction wasn't really working though. What he really wanted to do was to tell her to take all of her clothes off so that he could see the entire beautiful tattoo that was all over her gorgeous body.

He just couldn't come out and say that thought. He had to have more finesse than that. He was after all Patrick Jane, never at a loss for words, never off balance. Or at least that's what he wanted everybody to think. He was about to say something when Lisbon stretched her legs out in front of her and placed her feet on the coffee table in front of her. He was momentarily speechless. For someone so small she seemed to have legs that went on forever.

"So, to what do I owe this unusual surprise, Jane?" Lisbon asked without taking her eyes off the screen. The people on the TV weren't cooking any more. Now another group of people seemed to be eating the food.

No time like the present. "I've been thinking about what you said the other day, how maybe I should act on some of my urges."

Jane noticed that Lisbon's breath caught a little in her throat, but she didn't take her eyes off the TV. "Really? And are you planning on acting on some sort of urge?" She finally glanced over at him just in time to see him coming across the sofa towards her.

She didn't even have time to think before she felt his lips on hers. It was a searing kiss; she had never really felt anything like it before. She had kissed plenty of men in her time, but this…this was amazing. She never wanted it to stop. She could feel his hands running over her back and down her sides. They came to rest on her hips, and started nervously playing with the hem of her shirt.

They broke off the kiss and sat there panting, looking at each other. They still had their arms wrapped around each other and Jane was staring into Lisbon's eyes. She looked away. His gaze was so intense. Jane leaned down and whispered in her ear "Can I see it?" He began to nibble on her neck behind her ear, working his way down to her shoulder.

"See what?" It was hard to concentrate while he was kissing her neck like that.

"Your tattoo." He had his hands under her shirt now and was working his way up to her breasts.

She smiled slightly, trying to pay attention to what was going on. "You're going the wrong way then."

She pulled his face to hers for another kiss and stood up, pulling him with her. "Where are you going?" Jane asked between kisses.

"I'm not a teenager, Jane. I do not—" she paused and smirked at him "—make out on the sofa." Jane stared at her as she walked off down the hallway to what could only be the bedroom. Jane was up off the sofa in a flash, following her.

He got to the bedroom only seconds behind her, but she was already sitting on the edge of the bed waiting for him. He almost couldn't believe this was happening. It was a dream come true, the dream he had last night actually.

"So you want to see all of it?" She was teasing him, she knew, but she was enjoying it. He was standing of front of her now, looking into her eyes. She reached up and put her arms around his waist pulling him down on the bed next to her. He leaned into her and pushed her back onto the bed, lying on top of her. He slowly slid down her body until he was down by her feet. He started kissing her right leg, starting where the vine wrapped around her ankle.

Slowly, he worked his way up her leg. "You taste like roses," he commented as he kissed the back of her knee. He was surprised when she started giggling. "What's so funny?" He was having a hard time keeping a straight face. Her laughing was contagious.

"I have very sensitive knees. That tickles." Jane looked up at her and grinned devilishly. He kissed her knee some more until she was moaning and not laughing. The continued his journey up her leg until he came to bottom of her shorts.

He looked up at her as if waiting for her to give him permission. She looked back at him and said "You're the one that wants to see it. I already know what it looks like." He took that as permission and slowly reached up and pulled her shorts down her legs. He then continued with his attention to the vine that was still wrapping around her leg. He was almost to the roses now and he could hardly control himself. He found, as he reached the first rose, that his pace sped up and it seemed like no time at all until he had reached the top—the newest rose.

"God, you are so gorgeous," he mumbled into her hip. He could sense how excited she was by this point and knew that she could feel how excited he was as well where he was resting against her legs.

"Are you talking to me or that rose?" She joked lightly and reached down to pull his lips up to hers once more. She gave him a searing kiss as she unbuttoned his shirt.

"You. Always you." He whispered against her lips. He knew he wasn't going to have to worry about dreaming about her tonight. He was going to live it.


End file.
